Charles w



@nitratstra datent @fire 4the end of the machine.

CHARLES W. BLAKESLEE AND ANTHONY G. DAVISCFl WATERTCWN, AND EBENEZER B. uBEECIFIER, OF WESTVILLE, CONNECTICUT.

Letters Patent No. 80,853, dated August 11,1868.

, IMPROVEMENT IN KNITTING-MACHINES.

TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

Be it known that we, Cuantas Wt BLAKnsLns and ANTHONY G. DAVIS, of Watertown, in the State ot Connecticut, and EBENEZER B. BEEGHER, ofWestville, in the same State, have invented certain Improvements in- KnittiVng-Machines; and We do hereby `declare that the following, taken in connection with the drawings which accompany and-form part of this specification, is a description of our invention sufficient to enable those skilled in the art to practise it.

Our improvements relate to a novel construction and mode of mounting and operating a travelling threadcarrying arm; to a novel means for varying its length of circuit of travel, for widening and narrowing, without arresting its movements in a continuous course; and to other details hereinafter mentioned; and they are peculiarly Yapplicable to that class of machines having two parallel rows of reciprocating needles and a single thread-guide or eye, which delivers yarn iirst toene and then to the other, in order to knit tubular goods. l

In macnes of this general construction, the thread or yarn-deliverer has usually been made to traverse to and fro on a bar located above the space between the rows 'oi' needles; but in the application 4tiled by us,l April 14, 1868, and nw pending.;r in the Patent Oiiice, the thread-deliverer, Whilst continuously traversing around the machine with the cam which operated the needles, became at cach end of the machine detached from the devices which operated it.

Our present invention consists in the combination, with a thread-carryingr arm or bar, of a swivelling support, which is arranged to slide upon the arm, to admit of its being held in proper place, Whilst going around Also, Yin the combinatiomivith such arm, of an adjustable rod or rods, for arresting the range of travel of" vthe yarn-delivering eye, and causingl thc arm to turn around the end of the machine.

Also, in a means for automatically locking such sliding support preparatory to the-delivery of the yarn along the straight line of needles, and automatically releasing it at the end ot' the line. v A Also, in a peculiar construction of a thread-delivering tube o r eye, by whichit is enabled to perform the duty of serving as a pin or pivoting centre for the slidingl arm, as well as the duty of supplying yarn to both rows of needles. 4

Also, to other minor features hereinafter described. In the drawings accompanying and making part of this specification- Figure 1 represents my improved devices applied to `a machine, the outline only of the latter being shown, and

Figure 2 represents a longitudinal section detached fromthe machine, of the-yarnfcarrying slide and itsv support, and a portion of the cop or spool-bearing rod.

Areprcsents the body of a knitting-machine, arranged for two parallel rows of needles, the latter not being shown. B is a driving-cranki C, a bevelled-cog wheel, and D a corresponding Wheel, for imparting motion to the endless linked chain E, which supports and carries the needle-actuating cams F E, the latter sliding in a Way, G. His an armv or bracket-support, {vhich travels coincidentlyu'ith the cam, and may be secured thereto. I is a straight rod, fitted in a swivelling sliding sleeve or support, K, which is'so mounted upon thearm IzI as freely to turn upon its centre when required. L is a spring-catch, secured to the bracket or arm H, and which,.by the force of the spring, engages with a notch, M, on the' under side of rod I, as shown in iig. 2, in order to hold the latter in proper position for the delivery of' the yarn along the straight line-of needles; but the detention by this spring is lightenough to permit its hold to be overcome when the pin N, upon the arm I, has, at the end of its traverse, become locked, as hereinafter described, in the nich or opening O, cut in the inner end of the narrowing and widening bars or pieces P. The pin N is made somewhat Hat tened or oblong 4in its cross-section, at that portion which is to enter the nick O; `and the latter is made, preferably, somewhat flaring at its mouth, that the pin may enter it without fail, and circular beyond its` mouth, to permit the pin to turn-therein without escaping from itduring' the -act of turning. The'pin N is made hollow, tha-t it may receive the yarn, and thus also perform the duty of thread-carrier and deliverer; the pin is also curved, as shown, so as to deliver the'yarn to that row ot needles which is on4 the side of the machine upon which the eam'is for the time being moved.Y

A supplemental eye for the yarn may be made if desired, as at Q. When this is used, itvwould deliver the v yarn to theopposite r'ow of needles, and the-hollow 'pinv in such case would 'not be supplied-with yarn, but only perform its duty of governing the motions of sleeve K. vThe rods P pass through and are sustained by socket- -heads It, which screw into Vthe body ofthe framework, and they are held in any desired position therein, according as the fabrieto be made requires to be widened or narrowed, by detaning-pins S, which pass through holes l inthe socket-heads It, as shown, and also through any one of a series of equidistant holes in the rods Pl T is a standard, for holding thccop or bobbin, and it is rigidly alixed to the rod I, and travels withit. This standard is so formed as to hold the bobbin inverted, as shown, and so that its delivering-end is about in line with and in close proximity to the eye ofthe guidfewhich delivers the yarn directly to the needles.

A great advantage resulting from this arrangement is, that all intermediate guide-eyes or wiresto direct the course of the thread are dispensed withg and a still more important advantage is that it avoids any useless slack` or let-oil ot"`1the yarn, and consequently dispenses'with the necessity of employment of any sort of take-v up devices, whieh'tend to encumher a machine, as well as'to vary the even character' of the work by any variation or irregularity in their action. y

The parts being adjusted in the position shown inthe drawings, andthe machine put ,in motion by thev turning of the cranlnwhich maybe either by hand or by power, the cam, bracket, rod I, yarn-delivering guide, and bobbinare carried along simultaneously, the yarn being at the same time delivered to one'row l of needles; and when the yarn-guide or carrier has reached the last needle which is to be supplied with yar-n,

thepin N enters'the notch 0, in the end of rod P, and is arrested and prevented from going farther. The arm H, however, continues its course around the end of the machine, and in so doing unlocks the slide from its spring-detcnt, vand draws it back upon the bar or rod I of the yarn-carrier. During this latter movement, and in which the pin or tube N is within the slot, it will be perceived that, by reason cf its flattened or oblong vfornnit cannot, after it has commenced to turn, become disengaged from the. eirenlarpart of the slot, nor escape frointhe mouth ofthe same, until it has turned a. halt` circle, at which stage itsedgeis again presented towards thc mouth, and it is again ready to emerge from it in the samemanner that it entered it.

- v'.lhe same action precisely takes place at the other end of the machine, after the thread-carrier has traversed along and delivered its yarn to the other row oi' needles: 'at the commencement of each traverse, in a straight line, the springL being in position relatively to notch M to lock the bar I'ito the slide K, until it needs again tobe released to run back on the rod.

During thewhole operation of knitting, the cop or bobbin of yarn, travelling as it does with the yarn# delivering guide, and in close proximity to it, lets oil' no slack beyond .what is wanted for immediate use,and hence no takeup devices are needed. The arrangement of the cop of yarn, with `its tip pointing downwards, and withits axis nearly in a line coinciding'with the eye of the yarn-deliverer, alsovinsures an even draught ofthe thread at all times, and dispenses with any additional er supplemental guiding-eyes usually employedA 'in knitting-machines.

It is evidentthat'the rows ot`needles may be placed farther apart than is shown in the drawing. In such case, a. needle or two', or the requisite number of needles to make a regular continuous course, could be arranged at the end of the rows, or in the slides at the end of the machine, in any-suitable way, and the pin N, acting also as a yarn-deliverer, would then deliver yarn `to these needles also.

I claim the combination, with a thread-carrying arm or bar, of a swivelling support, Substantially as described, which is arranged to slide .upon said arm to admit cf its being held in proper place whilst going around the end of the machine.

Also, the combination, with such arm and a swivelling support, of an adjustable rod or rods, for arresting the range of' travel of the yarn-delivering eye, and causing th'e arm to turn around the'end of the machine.

Also, the combination, with such thread-carrying arm, of an automatic locking and releasing-device, operating-substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

Also, the combination, with such thread-carrying arm, of a tubular eye, constructed to serve as a pin or pivoting centre for thethread-carrying.arm, as well as to perform its duty of supplying yarn'to all the needles which arebrought into action for knitting. i

CHARLES W. BLAKESLEE, ANTHONY G. DAVIS,

witnesses: EB'ENEZER B. essonne GEO. SMITH, O. S. Sfrnnn. 

